Norfolk Island issues food alert as tourist flights resume

A growing food shortage on Norfolk Island is threatening to derail the Australian territory’s tourism boom.

Norfolk Island’s main Foodland supermarket is running very low on supplies due to a long delay in shipments. Picture: Supplied

Residents of Norfolk Island want tourists to be made aware of food shortages on the island before they travel there so they can bring their own supplies of essential items such as butter and sugar.

The appeal comes as Qantas begins six flights a week to the ­island from Brisbane and Sydney, potentially delivering thousands of much-needed visitors.

With increasingly long delays between shipments of supplies such as groceries and stock feed, residents fear a backlash from tourists unable to obtain basic goods, as well as wine and beer.

Island administrator Eric Hutchinson said the problem had been exacerbated by the loss of one of the two supply ships servicing Norfolk Island, and the lack of safe anchorage.

“At the moment we’ve only got one ship regularly servicing the island, but it also services and is owned by the Chatham Islands local government enterprise trust off the coast of New Zealand and they have first call on the vessel,” Mr Hutchinson said.

“We work in with their needs, but for the past 18-months shipping has been a challenge to the island. There is a shortage at the moment of some staples – flour, sugar, rice and other things like that. But it would be misleading to suggest anyone is starving on Norfolk Island.”

Mr Hutchinson said the island was a “productive haven” of fruit and vegetables, with most residents being self-sufficient.

A ship due in this weekend would be the first to arrive since New Year’s Eve, but it was unlikely to be able to unload for several days because of bad weather.